The Daily Prophet reported on the results of the International Wizarding Duel Tournament held in Spain, and only mentioned in one sentence that Albert Anderson won the duel championship.
However, for those who witnessed the duel competition in person, the final was a profound and unforgettable duel.
At this moment, in the kitchen of number 12, Grimmauld Place, Sirius was vividly telling everyone what happened at the International Wizarding Dueling Tournament in Spain a while ago.
Ever since he finished telling the story about how the Death Eaters tried to send someone to assassinate Albert but were wiped out, every meal has become the happiest time for everyone, because Sirius always takes the time to continue the story that he had not yet finished.
Although it sounds unbelievable, those are real things that happened, not stories made up by Sirius himself.
"In short, it was a very exciting and unforgettable duel." Sirius ignored Mrs. Weasley's complaining look, cleared his throat and continued, "At that time, Voldemort seemed to have used a compound potion and disguised himself as a dark wizard named Afjie. This guy had used dark magic to kill two opponents in previous duels and sent other opponents to the hospital. He was an extremely cruel guy. I think Voldemort probably wanted to use that guy's identity as a cover to murder Albert."
"After all, it's not surprising that the dark wizard Afjie will kill other opponents in the next game." Sirius's mouth curled up slightly, "However, Voldemort's conspiracy was discovered by Albert at a glance."
"You saw through it at once?" Bill asked in surprise.
"Yes, Albert saw through Voldemort as soon as he arrived at the contestant lounge." Sirius nodded and said, "That's what Dumbledore said."
"How did he see through it?" Lupin asked with a raised eyebrow. "Even Dumbledore couldn't see through it. Maybe his method can be useful to us in the future."
"I don't know. You'll have to ask him yourself." Sirius shook his head.
Fred and George on the opposite side exchanged glances after hearing this. They obviously figured out the reason, but neither of them intended to say it out loud.
"I still can't believe that a competition like that would allow contestants to kill people." Hermione put down her spoon and couldn't help but speak.
It is really hard to imagine that in an international dueling competition, other contestants would be allowed to kill their opponents.
"Although the organizers do not allow contestants to kill, accidents are inevitable in duels, so there are loopholes that can be exploited." Sirius suddenly showed a strange expression: "Besides, Spain actually relies on this to make money. Otherwise, without good-looking duels, why would their tickets sell for high prices? Dark wizards participating in the competition is actually a highlight of the duel competition. People like to see someone defeat dark wizards, or even kill them, because those guys deserve to die anyway. Of course, most of the time the referee will step in to stop meaningless murders."
"By the way, I remember you seemed to bet on Mr. Anderson to win." Lupin asked with a complicated expression.
"That's about 20,000 Galleons!" Sirius noticed the looks from the others and coughed softly, "Don't look at me like that. Some of it belongs to Anderson, and I remember asking you to place a bet as well. It was you who didn't bet."
"Twenty thousand Galleons!"
Ron was stunned when he heard the number Sirius revealed.
“It always feels like that guy makes money as easily as drinking water.”
Fred and George looked at each other and couldn't help but smile bitterly. Of course they guessed what this was.
It's so familiar.
"Is this considered cheating?" Hermione asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Definitely not. After all, only a few people dare to do so. After all, who can be sure that they will win the championship?" Sirius announced happily: "I plan to take out several thousand Galleons from it as funds for the activities of the Order of the Phoenix."
After killing Peter Pettigrew and paying respects at James and Lily's graves, Sirius's spirit and energy have been renewed. His life goals have also changed, which is to kill Voldemort, fulfill his godfather's responsibilities, watch Harry grow up, get married and have children.
Everyone was shocked by Sirius' generosity, a few thousand Galleons was not a small amount of money.
You have to know that the Phoenix Society has never had any so-called operating funds.
"By the way, Remus, we will publish these reports in the next edition of the Defense Guide." Sirius thought for a moment and said, "Everyone has the right to know the truth."
"If you post the truth, I'm sure Fudge will be very unhappy," Mr. Weasley warned.
“So the magazine also needs to come up with a new name.”
"A new name?"
Everyone cast doubtful looks at Sirius.
"The new magazine is a high-quality imitation of the Defense Manual. What does it have to do with us?" Sirius said as a matter of course. "Even if Fudge gets mad when he sees it, he can't do anything to us because there is no evidence to prove that the magazine has anything to do with us."
"I don't think Fudge needs evidence." Lupin had a strange expression on his face, surprised at Sirius's wit.
"Okay, kids, you should go back to your room and rest."
After dinner, Mrs. Weasley began to send people away because she was going to discuss something that was not suitable for others to hear.
The children reluctantly left the kitchen while Mrs. Weasley cast a distraction charm over the entrance to prevent anyone from eavesdropping.
"Goyle and his men have been acquitted. I heard that Malfoy has been running around and donated a large sum of money to St. Mungo's Hospital for the Sick and Injured." Mr. Weasley's face was a little gloomy, and he lowered his voice and said, "Fudge believes that they were kidnapped by dark wizards while they were watching the International Wizarding Dueling Tournament. They are not dark wizards at all."
"Is Fudge crazy? The evidence is solid, how dare he..." Bill's eyes widened. It was hard to imagine that Fudge would dare to do this.
"He is indeed crazy." Arthur sighed, "Many people think he is crazy. Not long ago, they tried to expel Dumbledore from the Wizengamot, and I also heard that Dumbledore lost his position as President of the International Confederation of Wizards because of Fudge."
"I heard that they are planning to take back the Order of Merlin, First Class, awarded to him by the Ministry of Magic." Arthur sighed, "If there is any news, it should be in the next few days."
"Fudge must have accepted a bribe." Sirius drummed his fingers on the table and turned to Lupin and said, "We can list some of his crimes one by one. You know, if the truth comes out... people will be surprised to find that their Minister of Magic is actually a..."
"Fudge can't be a Death Eater," interrupted Lupin.
"I didn't say he was a Death Eater. I just wanted to list all the bad things he did, so that everyone can open their eyes and see what their Minister of Magic did." Sirius' voice was light but cold. "I think everyone has sharp eyes. Everyone can tell whether Fudge is innocent or not."
This move is actually very cruel.
Perhaps, if each thing is separated, it would not be noticeable on a normal day. However, once someone deliberately links them together and exposes them under everyone's eyes, coupled with the increasingly harsh environment in the Ministry of Magic, it would be difficult for them not to make associations.
"Did you come up with that yourself?" Lupin felt that Sirius had really changed a lot.
“I guess so!”
"If that's the case, I think the prophecy that Fudge will step down seems..." Bill chose his words carefully and said, "It's possible to come true."
"Did we do something wrong?" Sirius suddenly said, "Shouldn't we let some beasts escape?"
"I originally thought that Goyle, Crabbe, Selwyn and Avery would receive the due punishment after their identities as Death Eaters were exposed. But what happened? Except for Peter who was killed by me, the others escaped."
"Do you think we should kill them?" Lupin frowned. This was undoubtedly not a pleasant topic.
"No, I don't think it matters whether we kill them or not. We need to make sure they can't become our enemies and render them harmless." Sirius shook his head and reminded, "Lock them up, or do something else... Anyway, make sure they can't continue to be a threat to us. Otherwise, if Goyle, Crabbe, Selwyn and Avery kill our companions one day, can we assume that they died because of us?"
Everyone frowned, what Sirius said was undoubtedly a very likely thing to happen.
However, once a killing spree breaks out and both sides become bloodthirsty, the situation may completely get out of control.
"Are you going to raise this matter at the next Order meeting?" Mr. Weasley asked Sirius.
"No, I plan to discuss it with Dumbledore in private. And don't tell Snape. That guy is unreliable." Sirius reminded.
"Come on, Sirius, Snape still gave us a lot of reliable information." Lupin chose to believe Dumbledore.
"Snotlout also gave Voldemort some information about us. Who knows which side a double agent like him belongs to?" Sirius raised his hand to interrupt, "Since we don't know and can't be sure, we might as well not believe him from the beginning."
…
Fudge has been in a good mood in recent days. Not only did they succeed in making Dumbledore lose his position as President of the International Confederation of Wizards, but they also kicked him out of the Wizengamot, the Supreme Wizarding Court. Now, as long as they take back his Order of Merlin, First Class, Fudge believed that not many people would be willing to believe Dumbledore's words anymore.
The masses are blindly obedient and rarely willing to think about the reasons. This also means that it is not difficult to mislead them. With the continuous bombardment of information in newspapers, uninformed wizards will be misled by the information in the newspapers and think that Dumbledore is really senile and confused.
"Then, it's about how to deal with Harry Potter, to find a way to silence him, to discredit him... to make people think he's a delusional fool."
Fudge knew that soon no one would be willing to believe what they said, no one would believe that Voldemort had been resurrected, because they themselves were also unwilling to believe these things.
"Dolores, I need you to keep an eye on Harry Potter. If he uses magic illegally, notify me immediately." Fudge said to Umbridge, which could actually be considered a hint. Fudge has been the Minister of Magic for several years, so how could he not have some tricks
"I will," said Umbridge.
"Very good, if that guy uses magic outside again, I can get Dumbledore to fire him."
"Minister, what about my joining Hogwarts? Did Dumbledore agree?" Umbridge suddenly asked.
"He hasn't agreed yet, but if Dumbledore can't provide a candidate for the teaching position, I will pass the Ministry of Magic law to make you a professor at Hogwarts." Fudge said without hesitation: "I'm afraid you will have to be prepared to go to Hogwarts to take up your post at any time."
"What if he finds someone?" Umbridge felt that Fudge was unreliable.
"He can't find the right person!" said Fudge affirmatively.
"All right"
Just at this moment, there was a knock on the door of the minister's office.
"Come in," Fudge said to the wooden door.
"Minister, this is bad!" Percy walked into the minister's office panting.
"What's wrong, Weasley?" Fudge asked with a frown. He didn't like Weasley's reckless look.
"Defense Guide. Sirius Black has released the latest issue of Defense Guide." Percy put the magazine in front of Fudge and quickly turned to a page.
"Assholes, how dare they!"
After Fudge took the magazine, his face suddenly changed. He clenched his fists and hung them on the table. He stood up and stared at the magazine in front of him, wishing he could tear it to pieces.
This issue of the magazine contains articles on the Spanish side of the International Wizarding Dueling Tournament, and contrasts this with the Ministry of Magic's attitude towards the matter.
This is like roasting Fudge on a fire rack.
"Issue an immediate reward for Sirius Black and Remus Lupin for disturbing public order." Fudge roared at Percy, his spit flying into Percy's face.
"I'm afraid not." Percy made a bitter face and reminded carefully: "Although this magazine looks very similar to the "Defense Guide", it is a replica."
Percy pointed to the name of the magazine, it was not the Defense Guide, but the Defense Express.
"We don't have any evidence to prove that this is a newspaper printed by the magazine founded by Sirius Black. Even if we catch Sirius Black and Remus Lupin, they will not admit that he has anything to do with this matter."
"What good ideas do you have?" Fudge stared at Percy, "Tell me, what good ideas do you have."
"We'll just have to figure out a way to turn this magazine into a joke," Percy suggested.
"Can't ban them?" Fudge was very dissatisfied with Percy's approach.
"The more it is banned, the more likely it is to have a counter-effect. People will be curious about what is in the magazine and why the Ministry of Magic banned it?" Percy reminded.
"That's enough. I don't want to hear this from you." Fudge said irritably, "I allow you to use all means to minimize the impact of this incident."
"I will," Percy said seriously.
"As long as you can demonstrate your ability to get things done, I will promote you as appropriate." Fudge painted a big picture for the other party.
There was no way out. The Spanish Ministry of Magic classified Goyle and his gang as Death Eaters, but Fudge believed that they were only kidnapped and declared them not guilty.
These are actually not a big deal. We all forget things. As long as no one mentions them, they will be covered up and passed.
However, the Defense Express cruelly opened the scars and exposed the bloody wounds to everyone.
The four people who were considered innocent had actually been suspected of being Death Eaters. What was worse was that there were even photos attached.
A photo taken when the four were just "rescued".
That doesn’t feel like being “saved.”
It was as if he was telling everyone else that those four guys were Death Eaters, and that he, Cornelius Fudge, was related to the Death Eaters.
This kind of thing is absolutely not allowed, even Fudge suspected that they were Death Eaters.
"Make a diplomatic protest to the Spanish Ministry of Magic," said Fudge suddenly.
"Should we take action against Albert Anderson?" Percy asked tentatively.
"Not yet?" Fudge frowned and said, "That guy just won the championship for the British wizarding world, and... there's no rush for this matter."
After the last experience, Fudge realized that the guy also had a group of supporters behind him. His attack on Dumbledore had already pushed many wizards to the opposite side, and his political enemies laughed at him unscrupulously. Fudge felt that it was not a good choice to continue to provoke another group and push the neutral faction to the opposite side.
"Okay, I'll take care of it right away!" Percy nodded slightly to Umbridge and left in a hurry.
"Minister, I'm leaving first!"
Umbridge looked at the annoyed Fudge, turned away thoughtfully.
In fact, she was somewhat disdainful of those who just kept muttering all day long but didn't dare to take action.
"Someone has to take action." Umbridge thought this was a good opportunity.
Fudge's words just now reminded Umbridge that Potter had violated the International Confederation of Magicians' Statute of Secrecy more than once before.
If he continued to violate the Statute of Secrecy, the Ministry would have grounds for expulsion.
It was not difficult to force Harry Potter to use magic.
Umbridge believed that as long as Fudge could save face and not be caught, he would not mind why the Dementors were chasing Harry Potter, but would be happy to have the opportunity to expel Harry Potter.